Japan's Rise

Military dominance paired along with motivation from western nations were the driving forces behind the reforms Japanese government implemented following World War I. Many western leaders criticized Japan for their imperial and military isolationism. The Exclusion Act of 1924 that prohibited all Japanese immigration to the U.S. only reiterated those feelings for people around the world. They then began to return to an emperor centralized government. Emperor Hirohito’s ascension to the throne brought the usually unwilling Japanese population closer and closer to democracy. Japan developed two political parties: the liberals and the lefties. The liberals continued to push for democratic change while the conservatives pushed to stop all significant political reform.

            The early 1930s were dim for Japan. They experienced a period of economic crisis which stemmed from the Great Depression. It caused uncontrollable price changes, large amounts of unemployment, societal turmoil, and a decline in trade which was needed to supplement their struggling economic system. During this time the Japanese army also began to drift away from political leadership and make its own decisions. They invaded Manchuria in 1931 without permission of political leaders. The League of Nations made it clear that they did not agree with the invasion but in way could enforce their disapproval; soon after Japan withdrew from the League of Nations. Following the withdrawal the country was governed almost completely by its military forces.

            In 1937 the troops located in Manchuria continued their push and invaded China. This war was blessed by Hirohito. Within five months Japan had completely dismantled the Chinese and had taken completely control over their military. Japanese troops became brutal, performing one of the most atrocious acts in military history, the ‘Rape of Nanking’. By 1940 the war had been in stalemate for quite some time then Japan signed the Tripartite building an alliance with Germany and Italy. Japan then became obsessed with oil, the US aware of the oil importance proclaimed an oil embargo on them. “Western intervention in the form of economic sanctions (most importantly oil) against Japan would transform the nature of the war” (History). These actions all led up to the attack on Pearl Harbor in December of 1941; which in turn brought World War II to Asia.

            Japan rose to power through military dominance that caught the attention of the western world. The emergence of this new military power forced the rest of the world to not only acknowledge them but to take precautions to stop them or build alliance with them. Once again the Japanese empire has proven that military dominance is probably the most important element for a great empire to have.
http://www.history.co.uk/explore-history/ww2/pearl-harbor.html